Happy Birthweek to Me

As you can guess from the title of this post, my birthday was this week! Since that was one of the highlights of my week, I shall tell you all about it. The morning of Wednesday, October 9th, began as most mornings do, with me sitting in the basement of my building doing homework in the wee hours of the night. As the clock struck midnight, the magic began. There were Facebook posts, phone calls, texts, and the like to kick off what many have called the best day of the year. After actually finishing my assignments and studying for my midterm scheduled for later that day (yes, I did take a midterm on my birthday and what a joyous occasion it was), I slept. That was definitely anticlimactic, so I’ll just fast forward to the best part – my birthday dinner! A few of my friends took me to Molly’s, which is a really nice restaurant in town with delicious food, where I had a meal like no other. After being stuffed with bread and butter and fish and chips, the nice waiters and waitresses at the restaurant sang “Happy Birthday” to me and brought out a generous slice of cheesecake, which I had to eat, of course, out of respect for everyone who went through so much trouble to prepare such a beautiful dessert. My friends even surprised me with a gift (J. Crew gift card!!!!) and paid for my dinner, so I actually have the best friends ever. After the birthday dinner, we went back to my room. Rather, I went back to my room and came home to this: a surprise party made complete with Lou’s pies, a guitar, kettle corn, karaoke to the song “Ignition,” and post-it notes all over my room with special messages. I am so thankful to have spent my 18th birthday with such wonderful people who made it truly memorable.

Birthday Dinner at Molly’sYou may not be able to tell from the back, but I was definitely surprised

Though I personally think that my birthday was the best thing to happen this week, there are other events that some people may appreciate more in the grand scheme of things, like maybe Homecoming and the lecture on Thursday with M.A.S.H.’s Alan Alda. Speaking of which, I attended the aforementioned lecture. It was entitled, “Getting Beyond the Blind Date with Science,” and the talk was so enlightening. Essentially the message was that people who study the sciences should help non-scientists understand the real wonder of science so that they can appreciate it and its gifts to mankind. Such communication requires a “human spark.” For more information, be sure to check out the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University.

Most of all, you probably want to know about Homecoming. The weekend was spectacular and full of so much school spirit. There was never a dull moment, from the freshmen cluster parade to the bonfire experience to the actual game itself the next day. The sea of proud alums and fellow students who bled green was a reminder of why Dartmouth is the perfect place for me. The sense of community with each passing lap around the bonfire (I ran a solid 45 laps and walked about 5 so basically 50! I was pretty proud of myself) and each cheering fan at the game was truly astounding. The weather, too, was beautiful and everyone seemed so happy. Even grabbing a meal at the Hop was a ton more exciting just because of the fact that it was Homecoming weekend…and also maybe because we beat Yale. Did I mention we beat Yale? We did.

Friends outside of the Choates cluster getting ready for the parade of seventeens!Enjoying a gorgeous afternoon after the Homecoming game